Day 246

I don't even know where to start: I love long weekends. One less day of work. This one in particular was jam packed with activity. Leah, Andrew, and I were all sick at points last week with colds/sore throat/fever. Andrew had a 102 on Wednesday. So Friday night we were going to take it easy at home. Our good friends Jaime and Steve were in town with their daughter Ella, who is 2 weeks younger than Andrew. We have been dying to get these two together. Steve's parents live literally in our backyard, so we ended up going over there for a little bit to get some good photos. When we got their Ella was wearing a bib that said "I Love Andrew" and they got Andrew a bib that said "I Love Ella." Its was the cutest thing ever.

Saturday morning was the bar mitzvah service. I'm no big temple fan, but I went to see my cousin's son Brian "become a man." Leah stayed home with Andrew. I personally think that whole "becoming a man" thing is comical. Brian did a dual service with his cousin Jalyn. You know what that meant - extra long service! Brian definitely did a great job and was I'm sure relieved that he didn't have to go to Hebrew school ever again. Saturday after the service MD and his girlfriend Heather drove in for the party, so we all went for lunch at Corky and Lenny's - MD wanted Heather to get the full C-Town experience. Saturday MD, Heather, Andrew and I made a stop over at Jeremy's to see a couple of his college buddies, including one of the greatest guys going, "The Biebs" who was in town for the weekend.

Saturday night was the party. Now lets get into it. Bar mitzvah parties are not what they used to be ladies and gentlemen. Its become a "can you top this" situation for many parents. Now since this was a dual party, I can honestly say I know that my cousin Debbie and her husband Steve were not behind this completely. This was a production of their sister in law. They called it "Club Joseph." It was huge. 300 people. they had three different rooms, a jazz club area for the adults, two rooms for the kids that were loud music, strobe lights, the works. Lots of great food for teasers - sushi, potato pancakes with ahi tuna on top, shrimp, stuffed artichokes. The main room was huge as well. Mad props on the dinner as well. They had a ton of different stations - pizza, pasta, burgers, fries, onion rings (with dipping sauces or ranch, buffalo sauce, and cheese), salads, and fajitas. The Vodka was flowing, as was the red wine for Leah. I took a ton of great photos. Leah was so cute. I haven't seen her have that much fun in a year. She was dangerous on the dance floor. Speaking of which - lets talk about 7th graders these days. I know that Jalyn didn't really have an outfit change during the evening, did she? These little girls all dress like they are 23 and wear more makeup than Tammy Faye Baker. The best is that Brian's brother Mitch, who is an 8th grader was giving me all the scoop on these girls. I was stunned at how advanced they are these days. Made me laugh, but shudder as well. The good news is that I have a son. Chek out Brian enjoying the ladies at his party above. We had a really good time and again, I have a great family. We know how to have a good time. We had three new entries into the group this time too - Heather, Julia - Cousin's Steve's woman, and Andrew - cousin Julie's man. Thumbs up to all. An other solid performance by Uncle Kenny as well. My man loves his Grey Goose and gets funnier after every one.

Leah and I didn't get to bed until around 12:30. Naturally, the night after his first full night of sleep without waking up. Andrew greeted us at 2:30. I told Leah I'd handle it, even though that is usually her shift. Nothing like feeding a crying baby after eight glasses of vodka and passing out two hours earlier. Sunday Debbie and Steve had a family brunch at their house and we came home to catch up on some rest. We needed it as we were going to expel a ton of energy at the Cavs/Pistons game Sunday night.

With MD working for the Pistons, he was working on getting us tickets for the game. He tried for four and ended up with six. So me, Leah, mom, Heather, our neighbor Peggy and Ags, in town for the weekend as well, headed down to the Q. What an atmosphere they had. You've got to give Cavs owner Dan Gilbert a ton of credit. he puts this all in motion with his energy and enthusiasm for his team. We walked in and everyone was a buzz. They gave everyone a "Beat Detroit" t-shirt and this flashing light necklace. As we were walking to the seats, Leah and Peggy disappeared and came back wearing their shirts. Do I have the best wife or what? She was so cute. Totally into the game. Waving her white towel in her Beat Detroit t-shirt. Ags and I just raved about the game day atmosphere all game long. Lebron played an unbelievable game with 32 points, 9 rebounds, 9 assists, and one monster slam over Rasheed Wallace. He willed the Cavs to the 88-82 win. Gotta prop up MD for getting us in the building. We were in the upper deck pretty high, but there is not a bad seat in the house. And you just had to be there.

Some classics from the game: Two people sitting behind my mom and Heather screamed so loud all game long, plus the bad finger whistle. They had 10 beers each. The more my mom turned around, the louder they got. They were also big on the "Detroit Sucks D*ck" chants and the woman screeched like you've never heard. One time during a Pistons free throw, she screamed, they made the shot, and my mom turned around and said "that worked." HAHAHAHAHA. My dad would have been so proud - Up four with the ball and six seconds left, the Cavs were fouled. Ags and I bolted out and the girls followed. We parked at the Ritz valet and gave the guy a $20 to keep it in front. By the time we go to the car, it was ready, the girls followed a few minutes behind and like my dad used to, I zigged and zagged us to the freeway in 3 minutes. We were home in 20. It was shades of the old days. We missed only six seconds of action and beat the crowd out. So tonight is game five. My buddy Jared just called me with an extra seat so I'm in! 10th row midcourt, lower bowl. How good? I hope I can bring us home a winner. Cleveland owned Detroit this weekend. The Tribe swept the Tigers and the Cavs took down the Pistons. The way I look at it is, my teams need me. I'll be at Tribe/Tigers Friday night this weekend as well.

Memorial Day was spent mostly outside. It was beautiful here. Leah got up in the middle of the night with Andrew, so she was exhausted. I was up with him at 7:15. At 10:30, I had to go up and make sure Leah was still breathing. We went for a long walk with Andrew, Casey, and our Peggy before heading to the Schneiders for Ella and Andrew time and lunch. We got some great pics. At one point, Ella and Andrew were lying on a mat and Ella reached out and grabbed Andrew's hand and held it. It was so classic. I got a great pic of it above. I'll tell you there is nothing better than seeing a lifelong friend with their child who is two weeks apart from my own. Jaimo and I have been close since 6th grade and watching her with her daughter is amazing to me. Its just too bad we don't live in the same city. Makes these times more special I guess. We had to go to Oakwood for dinner (again). I think it may be Andrew's last appearance there for a while. He cried most of the night and we had to bail early. Great weekend overall though.

Happy Time: Happy one year anniversary to my sister in law and brother in law Jessica and Justin. Tomorrow is the birthday of the great Scott Robuck himself. Next year at this time, Scott will be getting married and i am lucky enough ot be his best man. Can't believe it, seeing as though it seems like yesterday Leah brought me to his bar mitzvah. Unreal. You da man Scott!

Prairie Update: The sale of my company goes through Friday and still to this minute I haven't heard as much as a peep on what is going on. It is very odd, but I am just going about my business as if nothing is going to change until they tell me otherwise. Another thing coming to an end this week are my Dallas re-runs. I forgot how bad the final year was. One person thrilled by this is Leah. She thinks I am nuts watching every episode of a show that ended 16 years ago. Can't say I disagree.

Song of the Day: "It Ain't Easy" by 2Pac

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEEZ!

MD turns 34 today. To quote cousin Steve, he's "Paul Pierce all year long." Anyways, the deez is on his way to C-Town this weekend for the Cavs/Pistons games and for my cousin's son Brian's bar mitzvah. He is bringing in his girlfriend Heather to meet the natives! Anyways, Gotta give mad birthday love to the #1 Tribe fan and my closest friend.

Day 245

Weekend Update: We had visitors this weekend. Leah's best family friends came to visit. Saturday morning they arrived; we had Jamie and her husband Darren with their two year old daughter Mira, and Wendy, Jamie's sister. The shame of it was the weather was crappy all weekend long so many of our outdoor plans had to be nixed, but we made due. Having a two year old running around here gave us a glimpse of what life is going to be like. It definitely has to be harder at that age. She has to be down for naps in the middle of the afternoon, she always has food or a cup of milk in her hand, lots of talking, lots of screeching. Mira is adorable, as you can see above, but it is very exhausting running around with her. We did have a great time with them, consumed a lot of wine and Geraci's pizza Saturday night, and showed these city dwellers what C-Town suburban life is about. Unfortunately, Andrew had his worst day since he has graced us with his presence Saturday. Seemingly every time Jamie or Wendy tried to hold him, he started crying. He wailed all day long and ate more than any day I've seen. It also took me much longer than normal to get him down. The good news was he slept all the way through 6 am Sunday morning. Sunday he was the direct opposite - he slept all day, even at Oakwood when we went for brunch with my mom, he slept through the entire meal. We had dinner at mom's with my grandmother and we finished up a great weekend by seeing the rest of our family on the webcam. Andrew got to see Aunt Jessica, Uncle Justin, Uncle Scott, and Gramma. No Max though. Props to the new webcam service sightspeed. A great find Justin...

A Perfect Night: Friday night Leah and I went with Jeremy and Amy and Steve and Aimee to the Tribe game in the Amtrust suite. (A side note - people in Cleveland call luxury boxes or suites "a loge." Its a term I used from 0-18 and once I hit college I realized nobody outside of Cleveland had ever heard that word. Therefore, I refuse to ever use the word loge, its beneath me. Like the Michael Stanley Band, its C-Town only and lame.) The Cavs were playing the Nest in game six at the same time, but in New Jersey. Being in the suite, we had two TV's, one outide, one inside, and we of course had the Cavs game on. Early in both games, our teams took big leads. The Cavs jumped out to a 19 point second quarter lead and the Tribe bounced back from three run deficit with a big six run second inning, led by Ryan Garko's three-run homer. (another side note - my rule always is wait until the Indians bat, and then once they are out, you go get food. Since the girls wanted to go get grub and could care less, the six of us went down in the bottom of the second. I wasn't in charge and the wives all had to put up with us barely talking to them while watching two sporting events. So when they wanted to get grub, who were we to say wait? So naturally I was getting food during the six run second.) Once the second half of the Cavs game started, Steve, Jeremy, and Jer's brother "The Mikester" were pretty much all Cavs. When Lebron picked up his third foul with six minutes left in the third, the Nets went on a huge run to cut it to one at the end of the third quarter. That is when Jer and I moved inside. I don't know what it was, but the seat changed seemed to work. What was hilarious was that the TV outside where Steve and the Mikester were watching was about 2 seconds ahead of the TV in the suite. So everytime Donyell Marshall or Daniel Gibson hit a big three, We'd hear Mikester yelling "YES!" at the top of his lungs. The Cavs closed it out to move onto the Eastern Conference Finals and the Tribe ended up winning 9-4, moving my season record to 5-0. But what a night. You all know me, was there a better night for me than watching a Cavs playoff game at a Tribe game? It was too good. Now I've got MD working on getting me and Leah in for game three, the first home game, of the Eastern Finals this coming Sunday night. Series Prediction: The Pistons just have way too much for this average Cavs team who is still Lebron James and a lacking supporting cast. The Detroit guards are such a mismatch against the Cavs that it will be too much to overcome. Pistons in six.

Catering to the West: Let me ask you this, why is it that all TV events, sports, award shows, etc, are catered to the West Coast audience? These tip times for the Cavs/Pistons series are a joke. 8:30 tip time on Sunday night? Do you think that anyone in LA, Phoenix, etc where the weather is beautiful all the time give two shits about this series? Network executives are so worried that west coasters will miss the game. Ratings don't dictate it, so why do it? Earlier in the playoffs, the riveting Warriors/Mavericks and then the best series of all, Spurs/Suns, all started at 9:30 or 10:30 EST. See a double standard here at all? West Coast dwellers can watch any game they want, while people in my time zone can barely make it to halftime unless the game starts at 8.

Nice Mayor: Once upon a time, Cleveland had the biggest joke mayor of them all, Dennis Kusinich. The so called "boy wonder" ran this city into its deepest depressions. I thought I had seen the worst mayor of all time, and then, my brother moved to Detroit. A few years ago, MD turned me on to the new mayor of Detroit, the great Kwame Malik Kilpatrick.

Folks - if anyone wanted to know why Detroit is viewed the way it is, look no further than the mayor. He was elected at age 31. Look at some of his classics over the past couple of years. On May 8, 2007, WXYZ-TV reported that Kilpatrick used $8,600 from his secret Kilpatrick Civic Fund to take his wife, three sons and babysitter on a week long vacation to a a five-star California resort, the La Costa Resort and Spa. The fund, controlled by Kilpatrick's sister and friends, was created to improve the City of Detroit through voter education, economic empowerment and crime prevention. Tax and accounting experts said Kilpatrick's use of the fund was a violation of IRS regulations. This week's Kwame blunder. WXYX is quote "out to get me" says Kwame. When the station sent a reporter to get a response directly from him on the civic fund fiasco, he did everything he could to avoid the reporter and then grabbed his microphone and threw it. It was all caught on camera here. Because of this, the mayor has abruptly canceling his trip today to a public pension conference in Hawaii, after he learned that local television stations had sent reporters to Honolulu to follow him.“Mayor Kilpatrick doesn’t wish to have the international body gathering in Hawaii or their mission misrepresented,” said a statement issued by his press secretary, Matt Allen, this afternoon. “The administration has been made aware of several local television stations who have sent reporters and camera crews to Hawaii to follow the mayor and the pension board representatives. Any distraction created by his attendance with our local media would be unfair to those present.”

Speaking of trips, Kilpatrick frequently hands over the city credit for charges at nightclubs and spas. Here on the mayor’s February bill: an $831 charge by a South Africa hotel where the mayor bunked in for three nights at a luxury Capetown hotel, traveling on a Congressional “fact-finding tour” to Africa. He traveled with his mother, Congresswoman Carolyn Cheeks-Kilpatrick and others and supposedly at no expense to hometown Detroit taxpayers. The mayor’s office claims the $831 charge was just the phone bill, that U.S. taxpayers paid for the room. No, these records show Detroiters paid for it all; phone calls, laundry, porters, AND the room for the mayor, too, at least for this stop on the junket. Class act Detroit has running the city.

Cleveland's mayor Frank Jackson is nothing to write home about either. Any guy who has the man I bought this house from as his financial advisor can't be that great. yes, that's true. I miss mayor Richard Daley of Chicago. Now that's a man of power and balls. He's like the Tony Soprano of mayors. He is one tough SOB who doesn't back down to anyone and gets things done.

Peace: Last Tuesday, the reverend Jerry Falwell, creator of the "Moral Majority" died in his office at Liberty University. Can't say that I'm too sad about it. I don't like to speak ill of the dead, but this schmuck deserves a rip session. Falwell was nothing but a hate monger who used religion as his cover. Remember his famous quotes after 9/11? "I really believe that the pagans, and the abortionists, and the feminists, and the gays and the lesbians who are actively trying to make that an alternative lifestyle, the ACLU, People For the American Way, all of them who have tried to secularize America. I point the finger in their face and say 'you helped this happen.'"

Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich eulogized Falwell in front of 17,00 students in Liberty's Football stadium late last week. Some of what he said was stunning. He told the crowd
"A growing culture of radical secularism declares that the nation cannot publicly profess the truths on which it was founded. We are told that our public schools cannot invoke the Creator, nor proclaim the natural law, nor profess the God-given equality of human rights......Too often, the courts have been biased against religious believers. This anti-religious bias must end."

And this nut job wants to run for President? I bet he gets George Bush's vote. These are the things Bush wishes he could say, but doesn't. Has Gingrich ever heard of the division between Church and state? No religion in public schools? To quote Dick Dodge in the Distinguished Gentlemen: "Nobody wants to hear a sermon." People shouldn't push their religious beliefs on anyone, especially at the high office Gingrich is potentially seeking. I sometimes am guilty of passing my anti-religious beliefs on others, but I won't be putting this on Andrew. I want him to grow up believing in something. His mother believes in God and the after life, why shouldn't he? I'm just very very jaded.

Sopranos, Entourage, and Idol: Last night from 9-10:30 PM EST was about as good of a 90 minute period on television I've seen in years. If you haven't watched Sopranos yet, STOP READING HERE. I had my hands over my mouth and a pit in my stomach when A.J. tried to kill himself in the pool. That was one incredible scene. What about when Tony kicked the crap out of the guy who harassed Meadow when she was on her date? He went brass knuckle technique on him followed by American History X style, making him eat the curb. The whole show was phenomenal. Entourage didn't disappoint either - how much better has the show been since Vince went back to Ari? But again, the reason to watch the show was Drama and his pursuit of a part in Rush Hour 3. Lastly, tomorrow night is the American Idol finale. Why I still watch this show is beyond me, but its like a bad movie, you have to hang on to see how it ends. I'm sure we will be stuck with several of the lame-ass all finalist medleys that are always brutal. The talent level here was mediocre at best, but Jordan Sparks can blow. She will win, but Blake Lewis will have a career.

Song of the Day: "The Mission" by Special Ed

Day 244

Happy Mother's Day: Yesterday as you know was Mother's Day. It was Leah's first so I had to make sure that I went all out for Leah. I will admit, I had a hard time trying to come up with something good. I also wanted to get her something I know she would like and/or use. I ended up talking to Leah's mom and getting the name of places where I could get her a massage, manicure, and pedicure in Arizona when we are out there this summer visiting. I also had some custom cards made on the Kodak Gallery website with pics of Andrew and Casey. Andrew was so excited about his first Mother's Day that he was up at 6 AM (gotta love that when we finally spent a night out with the Goldberg's and the Miller's and had a real babysitter. Great meal at Fahrenheit. Best Short Rib going. Drank way too much wine). Leah slept until 9 and Andrew and I gave her her gifts. We also spent part of the morning seeing MD's kids on the webcam. We saw Jace's missing tooth and watched Reese make goofy faces at us. She loves seeing Casey and always asks to "talk to" her on the phone. I always bark into the fun and she giggles and says "again." Its adorable. We then got dressed and dropped off my mom's gift and went over to my grandmother's and Leah's grandparents and gave them flowers and cards from Andrew. It's a tough day for my grandmother. Very bittersweet. She has three sons. One who is no longer with us (my dad), one who she is estranged from (Jimmy), and one who she remains close with (Kenny). I'm glad we could make her day a little better. We ended yesterday by going to Oakwood for dinner.

Now I grew up going to Oakwood and Leah and I got married there. They always do a great job with special occasions and the food is solid, but I'm just not into the country club scene. It was real crowded last night and it felt a little stuffy to me. It's a dog and pony show most of the time. My mom loves going there, but she is an avid golfer, so it is worth it for her. As good as the food was last night (I buried some roast beef with horseradish sauce, Caesar salad, and curly fries from the lids table - I cant take credit for that, it was all Uncle Kenny. Add in the sundae bar and apple crisp) give me grilling hot dogs and burgers at our house with the family over all day. Andrew was great during dinner. He literally was sleeping the entire time. I went to go feed him after dinner and ended up sitting in the same room that Leah and I were married in. It came to me while I was giving Andrew a bottle that I have certainly come a long way - almost six years ago, Leah and I were walking down the aisle in that very room and now I was sitting in the same spot feeding our son. Then I thought of Dad and how I still can't believe he isn't around to know his grandson.

Sincerely, Orenthal: During the weekend of the Kentucky Derby, every one's favorite murderer, O.J. Simpson was in Lousiville "searching for the real killer." On the eve of the race, O.J. and 11 others came into an upscale Steak Restaurant looking for a table around 10:30. Jeff Ruby, the owner of the restaurant, made news by refusing to serve O.J. and asking him to leave. You have got to give props to this guy. In classic O.J. fashion, he immediately drew the race card and having his lawyer look into legal action. "He screwed with the wrong guy, he really did," said O.J.'s lawyer Yale Galenter. You know what the real amazing story is here, that 11 people were dining with O.J. How anyone can hang out with him is beyond me. The guy is a murdered who flaunts his freedom in the face of the Goldman and Brown families. No clue who he lives with himself. If any of you want to tell Fred Goldman, the father of Ron, how you feel, go to Fashion Square mall Scottsdale. He works at the Nordstrom men's department. We see him every time we visit my in laws. I have always felt the most sorry for him.

Things You Don't Think Of: It's great to have a house. I love the space. I plan of staying in the house for 30 plus years. There are so many great things about it. I could never have a house like this in Chicago in a million years. With all of that said, when you buy a house for the first time like we did., you don't think of all the added things that pop up. We've got lawn issues. Our air conditioning works fine, but the high ceilings and sky lights cause the great room and kitchen to become unbearably hot when its 70 plus and sunny outside. etc etc. The heat is a serious problem. I have no clue how these friggin morons we bought the house from lived like this every summer. Cold air was blowing out of the vents and it still wouldn't cool the house. We've got the AC being serviced now and Wednesday we have a company coming out to quote us on tinting the windows. Like my father before me, I love air conditioning and need to be cold. The window tinting may do the trick. Bottom line everything costs money, my company is being sold and Leah currently isn't working. Real adult problems here now. Does this mean I'm getting old? Our babysitter is 22. When she came over she told Leah and I "when I'm your age I hope I'm as fun as you guys." That, my friends, is what I like to call a backhanded compliment.

Gas, Gas, Gas: No, I'm not talking about my son, but the rising gas prices. Even here in Cleveland gas is $3.19 a gallon. What a joke. I remember at KU I used to roll down to the Jayhawk Food Mart and fill up the Lebaron for $18.00. Gas was $.89 a gallon. That doesn't seem like that long ago. Meanwhile, the idiot running our country is hosting a White Tie Dinner for Queen Elizabeth in Washington last week. The cost of the dinner was upwards of $1 million dollars. That's right - a million dollars for a dinner. This guy just doesn't get it. Is it 2008 yet?

The Blog, Bringing People Together: In LA this past weekend, two of my friends from different worlds were at the same wedding. I had them track each other down and take a photo. Boith are avid readers of the blog and great friends, so the photo has been posted above. Its Beej and his wife Megan aka 'The Hammer" with Jen. Easy to see who the luckiest person in this photo is. Speaking of my friends, we are anxiously awaiting any day now the arrival of the second Graines child. I have also posted a pic of a couple of two girls who are already fighting for Andrew's affections, Winter Rafal and Ella Schneider.

B-Day Wishes: May is a big month for b-day's in my family. Gotta give mad love to my cousin Jan as she turns the Big 4-0 today! Jan (she goes by Janet now, but like my cousin Susie, who goes by Susan at work, she will always be Jan to me) is one of the top writers and the CJN and model's in her spare time (I'm not the only good looking Dery you know, hahaha). We have both moved back to Cleveland this year and it is great that we get to see her more often. I do have solid cousins. That is the truth. Also gotta send birthday love to my sister in law Jessica who turns 28 tomorrow. She is now out of Chicago and back in New York. There aren't many people with a bigger heart than Jessica. I definitely miss seeing her all the time, as does Casey. Lastly, Justin graduated Northwestern law school yesterday. Congrats to him - I honestly say nobody worked harder than Justin and it paid off for him. He is going to work at the #1 mergers and acquisitions firm in New York, Wachtel. They only take people from Harvard or Yale as first years, and he managed to buck that trend.

Song of the Day: "Syncronicity 2" by The Police

Day 243

The Best Wife Going: Now I know next week is Mother's Day, but I have to start off this entry by saying that by far, I have the coolest wife out there. Wednesday night, I went to the Tribe game and she stayed home solo with Andrew. Thursday night she went with me to the Tribe game on our "date." Now we get one night off from Andrew where we had a baby sitter and she was all good going down to the Tribe game. It was a beautiful night, we had a great time and saw a Tribe win. With the score tied I'm the 8th, I promised her we would leave after the Tribe hit. Grady Sizemore delivered a big two out RBI double and the Tribe took the lead and eventually won. We were in the car by the third out. Friday night we got the call from Jeremy and Amy inviting Leah and I to go to Game One of the Cavs/Nets series on Sunday. My first Cavs playoff game since 1992? We had to be there. Our neighbors Peggy and Cliff watched Andrew and we happily accepted. We saw a Cavs W, the crowd was great, I obviously loved it, but Leah had a great time too. It was all good. Leah has chosen to embrace her future of sporting events rather than fight it. You gotta love that. I'm one lucky man.

Andrew and his admirers: I've got to give a huge thank you to the various neighbors of ours who love Andrew already. Its literally become a fight to see who can hold him around the neighborhood. Debbie who lives three houses down always stops us to see him and offers to babysit. We needed one on Thursday and we called her. She picked up the phone and said "please tell me you are asking me to babysit." Our next door neighbors Peggy and Cliff come over all the time to see him and watched him yesterday during the Cavs game. Vera comes over once or twice a week for about 4 hours during t5he day to watch him. Andrew LOVES Vera the same way I do. Its great because Vera gets such a kick out of it - she was there when my parents brought me home from the hospital and now she helps me out with my own son. We really have been very lucky. We don't have a true baby sitter yet, but we are meeting a potential one tonight. We got her from Peggy's law firm. She is going to go to law school and wanted to babysit to make extra money as she is still living with her parents.

Playoff Atmosphere: As stated earlier, I haven't been to a Cavs playoff game in 15 years, so it was a great opportunity to go. The crowd was jacked up and very loud. Everyone was waving their white towels, the Cavs played a great defensive game and turnbed it on offensively in the fourth quarter to win 81-77. The crowd hit its peak with the Cavs leading by four with under 2 minutes left. Nets PG Jason Kidd stole as pass and headed in for a breakaway layup. Out of nowhere came SG Sasha Pavlovic to swat it away. Cleveland fans are so starving for something to get excited about and you could really feel that yesterday at the Q. I cant imagine how amped the crowd would be if they ever made it to the Finals. I still think the indoor fireworks are ridiculous, the music is about 2 notches too loud, and the atmosphere is not conducive for young kids, but the ownership doesn't care - young kids don't buy tickets. Regardless, it was a great time and it was great being a part of 20,000 screaming fans watching our team win a playoff game. I wrote a story for theclevelandfan.com about how this is a boom time for Cleveland sports. Take a read if you'd like.

More Sports Takes: I know we are carrying a sports theme today, but I have to touch on this Roger Clemens situation. For those who don't know, over the last two years, the future hall of fame pitcher has held himself hostage for teams, saying he is retired, skipping Spring Training and then coming back at his leisure to pitch for over $20 million for his hometown Houston Astros. He pitched under the arrangement that he didn't have to go on road trips unless he was pitching, and essentially did whatever he wanted. This year, he pulled the same stunt. This time, he was holding the Yankees and Red Sox hostage along with Houston. Yesterday, out of nowhere during the seventh inning stretch at Yankee Stadium, the crowd was told to turn their attention to the owner's box where Clemens had a microphone to announce he was coming back to the Yankees. He will be making $4.5 million A MONTH. Click here to watch this crap. Is there a bigger ego-maniac than Clemens? This is such a tired bit. he just wants to be loved and wooed and told how great he is. Announcing it the way they did was probably exciting for Yankee fans, but I find it so arrogant and typical Steinbrenner bullshit. I can't wait until the Yankees don't even make the playoffs this year and Steinbrenner wastes another $200 plus million dollars.

Celebs Love Getting Loaded: Two great stories out this weekend. I hope you catch it, and if you didn't it's right here, but maker sure you see the David Hasselhoff video. The former Baywatch star the man loved by German's all over the world has a serious drinking problem. he has been in and out of rehab. Watch the video and you can tell it hasn't worked. On this tape, The Hoff is loaded out of his gourde and has his 16 year old daughter taping him so he can watch what a jackass he looks like when he has been drinking. Watching him try to bury a cheeseburger is priceless.

Then we moved to one of my favorite hollywood starlets, Lindsay Lohan. The smokin hot 20 year old has been spotted doing coke on video tape. Good thing she is also straight out of rehab. The article linked here, has some classics in it. Check out this gem according to one of her "friends": "One night we had gone back to her place and, as always, as soon as she walked through the door she stripped down to her thong, bent down and snorted cocaine off her coffee table and then off her toilet seat." But Lindsay is not only addicted to booze and drugs, she is also hooked on sex with some of Hollywood's hottest men, says our insider. "She has told me that she has slept with James Blunt, Jude Law, Calum Best, Joaquin Phoenix, Benicio Del Toro, Jared Leto and James Franco," admitted the friend. "She loves Brits and has told me she has slept with the singer James Blunt a few times over the past month. "The last time was on April 15 after another house party. I think they went back to a hotel together afterwards. She is very protective over him and when she heard I had met him she sent me a text saying, ‘Stay away from him Bitch, he is mine.' "Lindsay told me she has messed around with Leonardo DiCaprio a while ago too but claimed that she didn't sleep with him. "She also flew to New York about two months ago to go to bed with Jude Law. Last November she slept with Calum Best. She didn't tell me if he was any good but she is usually too wasted to know what is going on anyway." I mean how good is that?

The there is the despicable human being that is Paris Hilton. The hotel-heiress and the epitome of famous for being famous, sentenced to 45 days in jail for violating her probation. Judge Michael T. Sauer, who I hail as the smartest man on the planet currently, told the court room that he wasn't planning on any jail time, but Hilton showed up 25 minutes late for her court appearance and was "powdering her face" once she arrived throughout. The blatant disrespect of the court caused Sauer come down hard on Paris. I for one applaud him. Its about time this bitch was derailed.

Happy B-day: Gotta send happy b-day wishes out to my nephew Jace who turned six this weekend. i cannot believe he is six. He is such a great kid. He had a birthday party at Duck pin-bowling in Indy and he was sporting a custom bowling shirt with his name on it. So cute. How good is that picture of him above?

Song of the Day: "Good Girls, Bad Guys" by DMX